South-West governors have established a joint security trust fund to strengthen defence measures across the region, improve intelligence gathering, and enhance coordinated responses to rising security threats.
The fund, which will be managed by the DAWN Commission, is designed to support joint operations, enhance intelligence sharing, and improve border and forest surveillance as part of a unified regional security strategy.
Speaking while presenting the communiqué at the South-West Governors’ Forum meeting in Ibadan on Monday, the Forum Chairman and Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, outlined how the new South-West Security Fund will operate.
Sanwo-Olu explained that the fund will be managed by a council of security advisers from the six states, who will meet monthly to strengthen collaboration and ensure coordinated responses across the region.
According to the governor, the forum has also approved a joint intelligence-sharing and communication system, a digital platform that will provide real-time threat alerts, incident logging, traveller and cargo notifications, and improved cross-border coordination.
“On forest surveillance, the forum commends the efforts of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, our hunters, Amotekun operatives, and other security agencies. We call on the Federal Government to support enhanced surveillance across the South-West and help secure forest belts that have become hideouts for criminal elements,” Sanwo-Olu said.
He added that the governors agreed on the need for Federal Government deployment of forest guards across the region, with states responsible for providing necessary personnel.
Reaffirming their commitment to securing the region, the governors stressed that the forests across the South-West must no longer serve as safe corridors for banditry, kidnapping, or any other criminal activity.
The forum also expressed gratitude to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for establishing the South-West Development Commission and urged the commission to fully deliver on its mandate.
They commended the President’s efforts in addressing insecurity and implementing economic reforms, while expressing solidarity with the Federal Government over recent security incidents in Kebbi, Kwara, and Niger states.
They also urged residents of the South-West to remain united and committed to the peace and religious harmony that have long defined the region.
